9 Cities … 15 Event Days … 7,950,000 Brand Impressions … 500,000+ Samples Delivered … 750,000 Happy Consumers!
One of the best types of endorsement is a client who keeps coming back to do more business. After The Regan Group (TRG) managed two successful tours for their Red Vines brand last year, The American Licorice Company (ALC) approached TRG to execute another tour for their Sour Punch brand. And we delivered unprecedented results.
The Challenge?
Differentiate Sour Punch from other sour candy brands on the market and reach millennials throughout the South and East Coast.
The Solution?
TRG sourced a shipping container and oversaw the process for converting it into a mobile candy bar to take on a two-month tour that visited high-traffic events in major cities including:
- Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, AL
- Alpharetta Arts Festival near Atlanta, GA
- Taste of Charlotte in Charlotte, NC
- Giant BBQ Battle in Washington D.C.
- Phillies Game in Philadelphia, PA
- Coney Island Fireworks Night in New York
- Boston Harborfest in Boston, MA
- National Sour Candy Day in Chicago, IL
The container included 15 light-up candy bins, a selfie-wall, a graffiti wall, and a multi-colored prize wheel. Consumers were invited by TRG brand ambassadors to spin-the-wheel for a chance to win Sour Punch branded stickers, water bottles, and lip balm, in addition to five different types of familiar Sour Punch candy flavors (Strawberry, Green Apple, Blue Raspberry, Tangerine and Lemonade) and three brand new flavors (Watermelon-Honeydew, Berry Lemonade and Grape-Pineapple). Brand Ambassadors also encouraged consumers to use the #EmbraceYourPunch when posting selfies and content on social media and to express how they ‘embrace their punch’ by coloring on the Sour Punch branded graffiti wall.
ALC’s purpose behind the Sour Punch “Embrace Your Punch” Tour was to generate consumer happiness by passing out free candy and by sending a message of self-love and appreciation for others.
“We hear time and time again that candy makes people happy, said Kristi Shafer, Vice President of Marketing at American Licorice Company. “We believe our purpose goes beyond delivering delicious treats to make people smile. We all share a responsibility to make this world a better place. At American Licorice Company, we continually look for fun, exciting and tasty ways to positively impact the lives of our employees, our communities, and the environment. Embrace Your Punch is one of those ways to love yourself and everything that makes you unique and to appreciate those differences in others.”
Through the various media interviews secured by TRG’s dedicated PR team, Brand Ambassadors were able to publicize the Sour Punch message of embracing what makes everyone unique and different. At multiple stops throughout the tour, a well-versed tour manager spoke on behalf of the Sour Punch brand during live TV interviews with local network affiliates as well as interviews with various magazines and blogs listed below:
- Fox10
- WMC Action News 5
- Eyewitness News 3
- Hawaii News Now
- Fox 8 Local First
- Good Day Charlotte
- Fox 46
- Globe Newswire
- Candy & Snack Today
- Automatic Merchandiser
- azfamily.com
- BOI-1DA.com
- Her Modern Life
- F4L
- Love Leigh Love
- Holiday Happy
- Caught In Southie
TRG’s media team produced numerous photos and videos throughout the tour to capture consumer interactions with the brand, activation, and products. The social media team then used this content to manage and post entertaining and informative content on Sour Punch’s live social media stories and to create an end-of-tour video summarizing the experience.
